THE 504 PROCESS

This section of the Manual addresses important steps
in the Section 504 process including: referral, evaluation,
eligibility determination, development of the Section 504 Plan, review, and
reevaluation.

A student who, because of a suspected disability,
is believed to need services under Section 504 is typically
referred for a Section 504 evaluation by a parent, guardian, teacher, other certified
school employee, the student if 18 years of age or older, or other concerned
adult individual. Upon the receipt of a referral:

·The referral should be reduced to
writing.
(Form
B)

·The parent should be provided
written notice of the referral, and be asked to provide written
consent to a Section 504 evaluation. (Form D)

·The parent should be provided with a
copy of "Section 504 Notice of Procedural Safeguards" (Form C)
with notice of the referral.

Once the District has received parent consent to
evaluate, the District may begin the evaluation process. If a
parent refuses to consent to an initial evaluation, the District may, but is not
required to, use due process hearing procedures to seek to override the
parent's refusal to consent to the evaluation.
Additionally, if a parent refuses to consent to an evaluation that is necessary
for a determination of eligibility, the 504 Team may determine that the student
is not eligible under Section 504.

The evaluation is the starting point for
determining whether a student is an eligible student
under Section 504. The District is required to conduct an evaluation before
providing Section 504 services. The
nature and extent of the information needed to make a Section 504 eligibility decision is determined on case-by-case
basis by a group of persons knowledgeable about the student, the meaning of evaluation data, and the placement
options, i.e.,
the Section 504 Team. Information obtained through the
evaluation process must be documented and all significant factors must be considered.
The District may, but is not required to, use the same evaluation process used to evaluate students under the IDEA. The
evaluation must draw upon information from a variety of sources and may
include:

·School records review

·Observations of the student

·Standardized
tests or other assessments by school staff

·Parent/Student/Teacher interviews

·Pertinent medical information

·Information
provided by the parent

·Other relevant information

·Behavior rating scales or other checklists

Where
formal testing is determined to be necessary, the evaluation procedures must ensure that:

1.Tests and other evaluation materials
have been validated for the specific purpose for which they
are used and are administered by trained personnel in conformance with
the instructions provided by their producer.

2.Tests and other evaluation materials
include those tailored to assess specific areas of educational
need and not merely those which are designed to provide a single general
intelligence quotient.

3.Tests are selected and administered
so as best to ensure that when a test is administered to a
student with impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills, the test results
accurately reflect the student's aptitude or achievement level or whatever other factor the test purports to
measure, rather than reflecting the student's
impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills (except when those skills are the facets that the tests purport to measure).

A medical diagnosis of a
physical or mental impairment does not, in and of itself, determine Section 504
eligibility. As mentioned above, Section 504 requires the District to draw upon
information from a variety of sources in making its eligibility determination.
A medical diagnosis is only one source of
information. Additionally, the District may request, but cannot require a
parent to provide a medical statement or authorize the release of the student's
medical information as part of the
evaluation process. If the District determines, based on the facts and circumstances of the individual case,
that a medical assessment is necessary for an appropriate evaluation, the District must ensure that the child
receives this assessment at no cost to
theparents. If alternative assessment
methods meet the evaluation criteria, those methods may be
used in lieu of a medical assessment. If a parent refuses to consent to a
medical assessment and alternative assessment methods are not
available, the 504 Team must proceed to make an eligibility
determination based on the information it has on hand.

Absent extenuating
circumstances, the District's evaluation and the development of a Section
504 Plan, if necessary, should be completed no later than 30 school days
following the District's receipt of the parent's consent to evaluate. If an extension
of time is required, the parent must be
notified in writing of the extension, the reason for the extension, and the
expected date of completion of the process.

The eligibility determination must be made by a
group of persons knowledgeable about the student, the meaning
of evaluation data, and placement options and must be documented in writing.
The parent of the student should be given a meaningful opportunity to provide
input into identification, evaluation, and placement decisions
for his/her child. Therefore, the parent should typically be
included in this process.

Where a student is found to be eligible under
Section 504, the need for a Section 504 Plan must be
determined.
(Form
K). The Section 504 Team, which should include the
parent, will be responsible for determining the services that
are needed to provide the student a FAPE. The Plan should
specify how services will be provided and by whom.

The Section 504 Plan shall be signed by the Section
504 Coordinator/Designee, indicating the District's intent to
implement the plan. A copy of the Plan, along with the Section 504 Notice
of Procedural Safeguards (Form C),
must be provided to the parent.

If a Section 504 Plan is developed for a student,
all school personnel with implementation responsibilities shouldwill be informed of the existence
and particulars of the Plan. All school
personnel with implementation responsibilities will be provided a copy of the
504 Plan at the beginning of each school year. Failure to implement the
Plan can result in non-compliance with Section 504.

The teacher or other person(s) designated by the
Section 504 Team shall monitor the student's progress and the effectiveness of
the student's Plan. The teacher or other designated person
will contact the parent (in person or by phone) at least annually to discuss
whether the 504 Plan continues to be appropriate or whether any
changes are necessary. If changes are to be considered, the Section
504 Team must be convened.

In addition, the Section 504 Team should be convened
and the student's 504 Plan updated whenever the student's
situation warrants a review (e.g.,
during natural transition periods, when a teacher or parent raises
concerns, or when the student's performance changes).